The top reported proficiency rate is 81% in Science. The lowest is 67% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Garrison-jones Elementary School
Garrison-Jones Elementary sits on Garrison Road in Dunedin, a Gulf Coast city in Pinellas County with one of the more genuinely walkable small-town downtowns in Florida. The school serves prekindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public elementary school in the Pinellas County district.
Academic results from Florida's most recent FAST assessments show a school performing solidly across tested grades. Math proficiency is a particular strength: third graders tested at a well-above-average rate, fourth graders even higher, and fifth graders close behind. The fifth-grade science assessment result was also strong, placing a large majority of students at the proficient level. Reading and ELA results are more moderate, with third-grade proficiency the highest among the tested grades and fourth- and fifth-grade results trailing somewhat. A parent who wants to dig deeper into the ELA picture would do well to ask the school directly about how reading support is structured across grade levels.
That ELA question has some district context worth knowing. Pinellas County developed its own custom ELA curriculum aligned to Florida's B.E.S.T. standards, built around a "science of reading" approach that starts in the early elementary grades and extends word study into grades three through five. The district publicly reported earning its highest state grade in 2024, attributing part of that to the curriculum shift. That's the instructional framework Garrison-Jones operates within, and it's a meaningful backdrop for any family thinking about early literacy.
The student body is mid-sized for a PK-5 school. Enrollment spans all seven grade levels from pre-K through fifth, with pre-K carrying a notable portion of the total count. Just under half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a moderately economically mixed population. White students make up the largest share, with Hispanic students the second-largest group, and the remaining students distributed across several other backgrounds. IEP and English learner data were not reported in the data available, so a family seeking information about special education services or EL support should contact the school directly.
No program data was available in the records reviewed, so specific enrichment offerings, after-school programs, or extracurriculars cannot be characterized here. The school is not a magnet or charter school.
The neighborhood itself gives Garrison-Jones a particular character. Dunedin's residential areas near downtown consist largely of homes built in the mid-to-late twentieth century on tree-lined lots, and the broader city has an active community identity anchored by Main Street's restaurants, breweries, and weekend markets at Pioneer Park. The Pinellas Trail runs directly through downtown, connecting the city north toward Tarpon Springs and south toward St. Petersburg. The Toronto Blue Jays hold spring training at TD Ballpark in the downtown core, which adds a seasonal energy to the city.
The housing market around the school reflects Dunedin's desirability. Home values in the area sit above the state median and well above the national median, though they have dipped modestly over the past year in line with broader softening across Florida. Rents have moved slightly upward over the same period. Monthly carrying costs on a typical home purchase at current mortgage rates are meaningful, and the rent-to-income ratio here is not light. A family considering a move into Garrison-Jones's attendance zone should factor in what publicly reported real estate sources describe as a lifestyle and walkability premium baked into Dunedin pricing.
One cost that prospective homebuyers in the district should budget for: Pinellas County voters in November 2024 approved a renewal and expansion of the local-option school property tax, doubling the rate for a multi-year period. The funds support teacher bonuses, support-staff compensation, and programs in reading, music, art, and technology. This is a direct added cost on the property tax bill and a direct stabilizer for programs families rely on.
Trend data across multiple years was not available in the records, so whether Garrison-Jones's proficiency results represent improvement, a plateau, or a dip from prior years cannot be assessed here.
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